Does a woman have a responsibility and ethical obligation to avoid drug use during pregnancy? If she does use drugs during pregnancy, should there be punishment for endangering the baby? What are the rights of the mother and the baby?

Obviously, this question threads a thin line between the “Pro-Choice” and “Pro-Life” debate. That, however, is not the only politically charged topic. We also touched on mandatory drug testing of pregnant women, reporting of results to the government, and surgical sterilization for women who use drugs. The question of whose rights were more important, the mother’s or the child’s, was raised. Various suggestions for ways of prosecuting women found to be using drugs was discussed, as well as treatments that might work.

In all, it was a very fascinating topic to discuss, and everyone remained civil and focused on debating the issue, not attacking each other. Hopefully anyone who chooses to comment here on this blog will do the same!
There were 35 conversation threads in all. I have only reprinted the conversation threads in which I participated. This topic contains eight posts:

5/8: Drug use during pregnancy: Mothers (should) know best – Feels that women should take care of themselves during pregnancy, but points out that sometimes women do not realize they are pregnant for a while; society should help women rise above their troubles rather than punishing them for being in a bad situation

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